Los Altos edges West Covina, 24-21

Los Altos' Estuardo Marcos (35) runs for a first down past West Covina's Josh Best (22) in the first half of a prep football game at Los Altos High School in Hacienda Heights, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 7, 2013.
(Keith Birmingham Pasadena Star-News)

HACIENDA HEIGHTS >> In a league filled with more twists and turns than a good novel, it was only fitting that second place in the Hacienda League was determined by a few chain links.

Los Altos’ defense stopped West Covina inches shy of a first down on fourth-and-1 with just over two minutes to play, then got an insurance touchdown from Estuardo Marcos as the Conquerors edged the Bulldogs, 24-21, on Thursday night.

Los Altos’ win combined with Bonita’s loss to Diamond Ranch clinched second place for the Conquerors, who finished the regular season 8-2 overall and 4-2 in league.

West Covina fell to 5-5 overall and 3-3 in league. The Bulldogs’ playoff hopes are slim, but more will be known after Diamond Bar plays Walnut tonight.

Los Altos almost let a 17-0 lead slip away. The Conquerors watched as West Covina scored 14 points to get within 17-14 late in the fourth quarter.

West Covina, seemingly with all the momentum on its side, drove to the Los Altos 20-yard line with just over two minutes to play. On fourth-and-1, Bulldogs running back Josh Best headed into the line of scrimmage and was limited to about a yard gain by the Conquerors’ defensive line.

The referees brought out the chains and West Covina came up just short. On the next play, Marcos ran 81 yards for what proved to be a very important touchdown.

West Covina wasted little time on its next time to score a touchdown, and Los Altos needed a recovery by Cristian Hacegaba on the ensuing onside kick to hang on.

“That’s another season in the Hacienda League,” Los Altos head coach Dale Ziola said of the wild nature of a league in which the top teams often take turns beating each other.

“Those kids, they gritted it up when they needed to and made a stop to win the game. I was praying for a long chain (on the measurement). I thought it was a generous spot and I was praying for a long chain.”

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West Covina entered Thursday’s game with a three-game win streak after losing its first two league games. But the Bulldogs got little going in the first half and fell behind 10-0 at halftime.

Los Altos recovered a short kick to start the second half and was set up with good field position in West Covina territory. Marcos scored on a 2-yard run for a 17-0 lead and it appeared the Conquerors might jog into the playoffs.

But the Bulldogs used a long run by Best to set up a short touchdown run by DeShon Love to make it 17-6. Following a defensive stand, Love scored again to make it 17-14 heading into the fourth quarter.

“That’s not just a game, but kind of a season,” West Covina head coach Mike Maggiore said of the loss. “We went for it and they made a big stop.

“Effort-wise, it’s not a question. We played our butts off.”

The Bulldogs are likely to come up on the bad end of the third-place tiebreakers if Diamond Bar beats Walnut tonight. If that happens, they can apply for a wild-card berth as the league’s fourth-place team. So can Bonita, which West Covina beat.

“We don’t like to leave it to anyone else, but at the same time, our league I think is the top league in the division and we should get four teams in,” Maggiore said.

“And I hope we get to play again this season. I think our guys deserve it.”